UNO baseball rallies in the ninth for its first win of the season

A two-run pinch hit double by Morgan Barger with two outs in the ninth inning lifted New Orleans to an 8-7 victory at McNeese State in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader at Cowboy Diamond.

The hosts had previously won the opening game 10-8.

The Barger double enabled UNO (1-14) to end a season-opening 14-game losing streak and completed a rally from a 7-5 deficit against MSU (7-7). All three Privateer runs scored in the ninth inning came with two outs.

Chaz Boyer reached first on a wild pitch with one out. Then with two outs on the scoreboard, Andre Damiens and Reese Kanter singled before the Barger double. The final three Privateer scores were charged to MSU relief pitcher Michael Desabrias (0-1), who allowed three runs on four hits in 4.1 innings.

Kanter was 3-for-4 to lead UNO in the victory with Tim Broussard and Damiens collecting a pair of hit. Raymond Winter (1-0) was the winning pitcher for the Privateers. Winter allowed just one hit in 3.2 innings after entering the game with a 6-5 deficit.

The Cowboys had previously led 3-0 after two innings before UNO tied it up in their next at-bat. The hosts than seized a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the third with the Privateers once more knotting it up in the fourth.

A go-ahead run off UNO starter Blake Prest ended the freshman’s day after four innings with MSU adding their final run of the game in the sixth. The Cowboys received a pair of hits from Jackson Gooch, Connor Lloyd and Phillip Lebleu in the contest.

In the day's opening game, the potential for a similar rally existed in the late innings as the Privateers came back from an 8-0 deficit after two innings. MSU capitalized on a seven-run second inning to build their eight-run advantage.

The seven-run frame came as UNO had three errors in succession with each tally going down in the books as an unearned run.

The Privateers struggled to mount any offense against Blake Ware (3-1) until the sixth inning. Ware had a perfect game until Brian Dixon led off the UNO sixth with a triple before scoring on a Zach Pohto single.

Ware's struggles continued as the Privateers cut the deficit to 8-5 with a four-run seventh inning. Barger and Dixon had two-run doubles for UNO in the frame. Ware’s day came to a conclusion in the eighth inning where he ran into more Privateer base runners. The guests trimmed the deficit to 8-7 in the eighth while leaving the bases loaded.

The Cowboys added a pair of insurance runs in their half of the eighth giving UNO a three-run deficit at 10-7 heading into the final inning.

The Privateers once more had an opportunity to tie or take the lead, scoring one final run on a MSU error and leaving the bases loaded when the Cowboys picked up the final out. Sam Peterson was responsible for the save, allowing the lone UNO run on two hits in 1.2 innings while walking three.

Stone Speer (0-3) took the loss for the Privateers in the opening, conceding eight runs – one earned – on nine hits over five innings. Nicholas Schiro put forth a solid 1.2 innings out of the bullpen for UNO, allowing just one hit.

Dixon, Zacary Hawkins and Pohto had a pair of hits in the opener for the Privateers while across the diamond, MSU received three hits apiece from both Gooch and Lloyd.

Sunday's series finale is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.

NOTESThe eight runs for UNO in both games represented a season-high, eclipsing the six scored at South Alabama on Feb. 22 ... UNO ended a 19-game losing streak against NCAA Division I opponents with Saturday's victory. The Privateers’ previous victory over an NCAA Division I foe came on May 21, 2011 against North Florida at Maestri Field… UNO’s win also ended a six-game losing streak against MSU. The Privateers lead the all-time series 22-16 over the Cowboys, but had not defeated their I-10 rival since Mar. 13, 2005.